Benson Episode Rating Graph

In the pilot of this spinoff series of Soap, Benson, the Butler of Jessica Tate helps out her cousin Gene Gatling, who is the Governor of the state. Benson's first escapade lands him into finding a way for a huge company to build their new bridge without killing beavers. His success in this idea seems to land him a ""trial offer"" for this new job.

The Governor is faced with a family problem. Should he go see his daughter in her school play as he promised, or should he accept a very important political invitation that is scheduled for the same night? The Governor decides he has to attend the political meeting and Benson has to stand in.

The domestic workers demand more money and Benson grants their requests to give them a raise. The blue-collar people go on strike after Governor Gatling refuses their plea. At the same time, very important people come to dinner and Benson has to do all the duties. He does all he can do, and with his smarts he turns it into a disaster so that they can get a taste of what it's like not to have them.

After receiving death threats, the Governor's new advisor, Clayton Endicott the 3rd moves into the mansion.

Kraus falls for the Butcher, but she loses her self-confidence asking him out.

The Governor gets sick and has to stay in bed. Ed, his younger replacement takes advantage of the position and responsibilities of Governor too far. Ed tries to become the permanent replacement for the Governor. Benson catches this and tries to stop it.

Governor Gatling goes with African president Ukassi to a dinner. The African president becomes a victim of an assasination attempt and while his wounds get worse, Benson plays the part of the African president. The problem is that the assasins want that president dead and they have their desires on killing him not knowing that it's Benson.

Benson is forced to lay off some staff members when the Governor makes a campaign to cut ""unecessary"" spending. Katie resents Benson when he has to fire the sweet woman who lightens up everyone's day.

After a boy breaks his arm by falling out of a tree, Benson has different feelings about becoming the boy's surrogate father.

An 11 year old Soviet is brought to the mansion for a professional chess tournament. While the boy is homesick and wanting to be out of the public's eye, he sees Katie who hides him in her room. All hell breaks loose when the Soviets can't find him and accuses the US staff of kidnapping him. The Soviets then threaten war if the boy is not returned.

Jessica Tate visits and she gets involved in a scandal. She falls in love with the French Baron who is visiting and all of a sudden he dies. It's now up to Benson and Jessica to try to fool a crowd of media that he is still alive and departing the Hotel he's staying at without them knowing and connecting Jessica with the death.

Very mysterious things happen in the Governor's mansion. Kraus panicks and says that the house is haunted. They have a seance and find out that the ghost was a goveror who was murdered a long time ago. The reason he is haunting the mansion is because the man who murdered that Governor was going to be honored by Gov. Gatling with a memorial street named after him.

The Governor tries to work out the struggles to make Benson the State Budget Director.

Governor Gatling is trying to get Howard Walker, the entrepreneur to settle his new factory in his constituency. Benson on his own tries not to let this go through because him and Howard's wife had a love affair years ago.

Somebody bugged the mansion and Benson tries to find out who by trapping them inside. It turned out that Taylor's lover, who was inside the mansion before, dispensed all equipment in the building.

Katie attends a controversial rock concert, even though her father forbid her to go and had Benson watch her. Now the question is, who will get home in time? The Governor or Katie? Benson, afraid Katie will not come home in time applies for another job in the meantime.

Kraus' childhood enemy comes from Germany to visit her.

Clayton gets upset when his father chooses Benson to run his empire after he dies.

Benson must pass an economics test to keep her job, but when she finds out that Benson is going to be her teacher, she thinks that it's hopeless.

After a press conference, Benson notices a strange difference in one side of the fire place. He tries to twist it so it is similar with the other side. When he twists the knob a secret map comes out which gives the staff gold fever. They go to the shed in back and frantically look for the gold.

Taylor quits being the advisor to Governor Gatling and decides to run for a public office. The Governor starts to need Taylor back when he can't manage his own political responsibilities.

The Governor is scheduled to be on television, but a lover's quarrel between Marcy and Dan, (the producer of the Governor's telecast) end up bleeding to his telecast, ruining it as one can say. Benson himself has to get into this.

Governor Gatling wants the staff to join him on his little vacation to a snow cottage. Benson agrees when he learns that Kraus will not attend. Later Kraus changes her mind and Benson has to live with it. He has to live with it harder when the staff gets snowed in.

Benson, a war veteran suspicious when he is told to report for an ""evaluation."" It seems that on their record, Benson Dubois died in the Korean war, so treating Benson like some kind of a spy or something, the Fed's watch and follow his every move. Even the staff is trying to link spydom with his work habits.

When Benson judges a beauty pageant, Clayton and Governor Gatling try to sway the vote in their direction.

Katie tries to ""paint a picture"" of everyone in her household through an essay.

Benson's old army buddy Eddie visits and him and Marcy hit it off after Benson introduces him to single Marcy. The problem is that Eddie is a married man and Benson didn't know that.

Libby, The Governor's sister thinks that Katie should be sent to a boarding school and the Governor sends her to one. The staff is crushed with the Governor taking his sister's advice.

The press secretary hatches a new scheme and it involves Benson in a ""Big Buddy"" program.

Katie is jealous when her father gives special treatment to a very important hostess which he calls Pretty Lilly. Katie fears that she may be losing him to her.

While Denise is about to give birth, Denise, Benson, and the Governor get stuck in an elevator.

Katie is suppose to write a school paper on her family, so she writes about certain situations that Benson, The Governor, Marcy, Pete, and Gretchen Kraus have all been in.

Marcy is marrying Dan, a producer and Benson is responsible for the wedding plans. That is until Marcy's mother disrupts Benson's plans by butting in.

Gretchen attends night classes in order to win her American citizenship. With a lot of hard work and achievement she fails the test. It seems that she remembers more when she's angry, so Benson and Marcy come with her. Benson then uses the anger strategy when she is failing. She gets angry and spews out answers that eventually win her her citizenship.

Just before a very important banquet with guests, Benson and Kraus go in the old storage room to look for something and the door shuts on them. With minimal healthy air and a freezing temperature Benson and Kraus have to find themselves a way out. Benson risks it all when he starts a fire near an old heat duct and the mansion fills with smoke. That is the way the firemen tracked them.

The men come to Benson's house to swap stories, play cards, and watch tv. Also, the Governor is a little disappointed at Benson for vetoing a legislative bill he was for.

Wanting to know how the ""little people"" really feel about politics and their real needs, Governor Gatling and Benson visit a mangy bar to talk to the constituents but land in trouble when a man picks a fight with Gatling at the bar, not knowing who he is.

The Governor's loudmouth father comes to visit and wreaks havoc among the staff. Benson then gets so fed up with the arrogance and the idea of the father breathing down his son's back that he traps him in the kitchen. Benson supervises him until the Governor's speech is over.

The Governor's campaign comes to a hectic close and the election results show that he has lost.

A bad remark about a senator gets aired out and the staff is in trouble. They have to find who blabbed before more damaging information gets out.

Marcy is going on vacation and she gets worried that Lorraine, her replacement may do a better job than she does and get dismissed for good.

Benson and Kraus are held hostage during a market robbery.

Benson fixes Clayton up with a date, but the date is disgusted with Clayton's romance ploys and ""manners"".

Benson and Governor Gatling are surprised at Pete, who reverted back to his youth.

After crash landing the helicopter in the desert, Benson, the Governor, and Clayton all struggle to survive on account of them being stranded.

After talk about Halley's comet, Karus dreams that she and Benson are the only ones left on earth.

Clayton's nomination of the Governor's budget director has a problem after it is found out that Clayton lives with a Soviet defector.

Benson and the Governor seek advice from a conservationist in helping them pass some environmental legislation.

Actor George Kennedy's plan to film a movie in the Goveror's mansion runs into deadly problems, and turns into a lethal murder mystery.

The Governor answers an ad from a personal's column from a magazine.

Plumbing problems at Benson's flat causes him to calling a crotchety old workman to fix his sink, but something unexpected happens to the plumber.

While being called in from President Reagan on account of a remark Benson made, Benson and the Governor reach The Oval Office, and while waiting for the President, the two get trapped in there.

While Governor Gatling is away, Benson and Clayton are depended upon to spend an 8 million dollar budget surplus before the next fiscal year, which is only a matter of several hours away. When the surplus was found out by someone, The Governor and Clayton go through political embarassment.

When Benson revisits a relationship with Senator Hartford, the Senator changes her position on Clayton's commercial-development-of-state-parks bill. When Benson calls her on it, she flip-flops again and ultimately abstains.

Benson tries to bring the Governor and his brother Jack together after 25 years of not seeing each other.

Benson persuades to pardon a man who was wrongfully imprisoned for 25 years.

A mysterious stranger lurks around the Governor's mansion on Haloween night.

While Benson and Kraus go to East Germany on official business, the two are accused of being spies and get arrested.

Despite warnings, on their way to fly a helicopter to play golf, Benson, the Governor, and Clayton run into disasterous problems with Clayton as their pilot.

Benson becomes involved in one of Clayton's wacky investment schemes. This one is investing in a weiner-dog to breed for puppies, but Benson grows too attached to the dog, as does also Clayton.

With everyone's lives in danger and not much time left, they try to crack the case and survive.

When an aunt dies, Benson and Clayton, learn that they might be related to each other.

Benson finds it hard to believe that he is the sole heir to the Playbird magazine empire.

Benson's pleasure turns to panic when the attractive doctor who conducted his physical wants to meet him to discuss the results.

A Declaration of War is brought out among two fighting nations after Benson attends a Trade conference.

Benson tries to investigate Kraus when she doesn't show up for a while. Kraus returns to acting and Benson disguises himelf as a limo driver to try and get her back.

Clayton has his sights on running the family fortune, until he meets his father's new, young, and pretty fiancee. Then he realizes that inheriting the fortune will be pretty challenging.

Winston, one of Katie's classmates tries to set Benson up with his widowed mother.

Katie's wild and undisciplined cousin Laura persuades Katie to lie to her father about sleeping at a friends and really go to a bar to pick up College men. You know what really flies when Benson and Clayton go to the same bar to get a drink and see them. Benson confronts Katie that he won't tell on her, it's up to her to decide whether or not to tell her dad or not.

In the 5th season opener, Denise and Pete are about to get married in the woods, but trouble arises when Pete forgets to put gasin the car and him, Benson, Denise and Kraus are are stranded. They then have to find a way to cicilization so they steal the minister's gasoline can and take off.

While Benson's neigbor is trapped in a snowstorm, Benson must take care of his baby for longer than he expected to.

Benson plans to have Kraus become Lieuteant Governor Benson's assistant. But things get screwed up when a nebbish with political clout is hired instead.

Benson is shocked when he tells his sister to be cautious with her ex boyfriend and doesn't listen.

Benson visits with his brother and Uncle who he hasn't seen in years.

Benson gets surrounded in red tape when he takes on the city mayor who pans to outlaw breakdancing in public places.

On a trip to Las Vegas, Benson meets the comic duo The Smothers Brothers.

While the Governor is away on business, Benson is responsible for the work that needs to get done. In this particular case, Benson vetoes a bill that the Governor agreed to sign.

When Clayton's name is passed over at the table of the Man of the Year Award, an award given by the Press, Clayton tries to capture Benson's personality so that he can win the award.

Benson saves Kraus' life but wonders if he did the right thing when Kraus' appreciation goes way too far.

Benson helps Katie win a cookie contest while he's suppose to testify against the mob.

After Benson decides to run for Lieutenant Governor, he learns that the man who offers money to his campaign will have to benefit from Benson by doing him special political ""favors.""

Benson, the Governor, Kraus, and Clayton talk about people from their past who influenced their lives greatly.

Benson's tie-breaking vote on a school bill leads to a major conflict with a powerful senator and a book-burning incident.

Katie is assigned to write a report about what goes on in the mansion and she starts to wrie about Benson and Clayton exchanging insults. Anyway Clayton feels that Benson has insulted him one last time and the case goes to court.

Benson wins the state lottery but loses it all because he accidentally said that he would donate it to charity on a television program.

While going undercover, Benson learns that the Lieutenant Governor is accepting bribes from a construction company.

When Benson runs out of his campaign money, a benefactor arrives when things look darkest.

Benson, the Governor, Clayton, and Kraus go off to Hong Kong where Clayton is mistaken for a famous designer and kinapped by a fashion tycoon and her henchmen.